Book picks similar to
Pengarron Land by Gloria Cook


historical-fiction
historical-romance
historical
romance

Mad for Love


Elizabeth Essex - 2016
     Set a thief… Rory Cathcart’s appreciation of the exquisite makes him the perfect man to expose forgeries and root out fraud in London’s tempestuous art world. But when his latest investigation into forged paintings puts him squarely in Mignon du Blois’ shaky sights, he finds himself deep in trouble, and captured by something more powerful than mere beauty. To catch a thief… The moment Mignon stops a rakish thief from making off with one of her father’s brilliant forgeries, she knows she’s found the perfect man to help her steal back a priceless statue, and save her family from unspeakable scandal. She has no intention of falling for Rory’s Caledonian charms, nor his seductive Scottish persuasions. From the drawing rooms of the ton to the auction rooms of the art world, the pair embark on a madcap adventure to save them both from ruin. But will the love they uncover be most priceless treasure of all?

The Fairy Tale Bride


Kelly McClymer - 2000
    But when her brother's love match is thwarted by the impossibly proper Duke of Kerstone, Miranda sets off to convince the duke to champion her brother's cause for love. Unfortunately, he is too proper to consider love a suitable reason for marriage, and too proper not to marry Miranda when they find themselves compromised. Now, Miranda has a second chance for happily-ever-after, if she can uncover her new husband's darkest secret.

Daughters of Sin Box Set: Her Gilded Prison, Dangerous Gentlemen, The Mysterious Governess


Beverley Oakley - 2016
     HER GILDED PRISON ~ She was determined to secure the succession, he was in it for the pleasure. Falling in love was not part of the arrangement. When dashing twenty-five-year-old Stephen Cranbourne arrives at the estate he will one day inherit, it's expected he will make a match with his beautiful second cousin, Araminta. But while proud, fiery Araminta and her shy, plain sister, Hetty, parade their very different charms before him, it's their mother, Sybil, a lonely and discarded wife, who evokes first his sympathy and then stokes his lustful fires.  As Stephen introduces Sybil to every pleasure she's been deprived of, duty turns to a deep and mutual love. But with the unexpected arrival of a contender to the estate, Sybil realises that what she's set in motion to save the family might have tragic consequences. DANGEROUS GENTLEMEN ~ Shy, plain Hetty was the wallflower beneath his notice…until a terrible mistake has one dangerous, delicious rake believing she's the "fair Cyprian" ordered for his pleasure. Shy, self-effacing Henrietta knows her place—in her dazzling older sister's shadow. She's a little brown peahen to Araminta's bird of paradise. But when Hetty mistakenly becomes embroiled in the Regency underworld, the innocent debutante finds herself shockingly compromised by the dashing, dangerous Sir Aubrey, the very gentleman her heart desires. And the man Araminta has in her cold, calculating sights.  Branded an enemy of the Crown, bitter over the loss of his wife, Sir Aubrey wants only to lose himself in the warm, willing body of the young "prostitute" Hetty. As he tutors her in the art of lovemaking, Aubrey is pleased to find Hetty not only an ardent student, but a bright, witty and charming companion.  Despite a spoiled Araminta plotting for a marriage offer and a powerful political enemy damaging his reputation, Aubrey may suffer the greatest betrayal at the hands of the little "concubine" who's managed to breach the stony exterior of his heart. THE MYSTERIOUS GOVERNESS ~  Lissa Hazlett lives life in the shadows. The beautiful, illegitimate daughter of Viscount Partington earns her living as an overworked governess while her vain and spoiled half-sister, Araminta, enjoys London's social whirl as its most feted debutante. When Lissa's rare talent as a portraitist brings her unexpectedly into the bosom of society – and into the midst of a scandal involving Araminta and suspected English traitor Lord Debenham – she finds an unlikely ally: charming and besotted Ralph Tunley, Lord Debenham's underpaid, enterprising secretary. Ralph can't afford to leave the employ of the villainous viscount much less keep a wife but he can help Lissa cleverly navigate a perilous web of lies that will ensure everyone gets what they deserve. Heat rate: medium to sizzling What readers are saying about the series: "These books are the best written time pieces I've ever read. Exquisitely written so well you'll feel transported to that era. Romance, evil dealings, scandals of all proportions, lies to name a few. These books are appropriately titled. The characters are intricately believable." “Lies, misdeeds, treachery, and romance.

The Reluctant Duke's Dilemma


Trisha Messmer - 2020
    She longed to be free. Pressured by forces beyond their control, will they give in to forbidden desire?England, 1823. After establishing a successful practice in America, Dr. Harry Radcliffe swore he wouldn’t set foot on British soil again. But when he’s named the Duke of Ashton after his callous brother’s sudden death, he begrudgingly returns to the pretentious world he detests. And his pledge to his dying mother to find a wife is thrown into chaos when he meets his stunning sister-in-law.Margaret Radcliffe finally escaped her abusive marriage. Yet her late husband’s final cruel act left her penniless, with her only option to remarry... the one thing she vowed she’d never do again. But the new duke’s startlingly familiar features awaken yearnings she thought long-forgotten, dangling the heartbreaking whisper of a passion impossible to fulfill.Although convinced the accusations that she murdered her husband are only salacious gossip, Harry's real torment comes when he wishes for a union that would make them outcasts. But even when they finally submit to their simmering attraction, Margaret’s dream of happily-ever-after may be derailed by society’s schemes.Can a scandalous affair turn into a lifetime of love?The Reluctant Duke's Dilemma is the suspenseful first book in The Hope Clinic Regency romance series. If you like swoon-worthy heroes, uplifting humor, and heroines beating the odds, then you’ll adore Trisha Messmer’s tale of tortured hearts.

Branches of Love Boxed Set, Books 4-6


Sally Britton - 2020
    Lucas Calvert, an earl wearied by the world and tired of being alone, searches for purpose. They come together in a marriage of convenience. Virginia and her children bring light and color back into Lucas’s life. But will Virginia’s determination to protect her heart destroy their possibility of finding happiness together? Miss Devon's Choice: Rebecca Devon lives under the severe eye of her aunt and the iron will of her father. Freedom will only come through marriage, but her hopes for a happy union are stolen away when her father arranges her marriage to a complete stranger. Christian Hundley, Lord Easton, has learned the hard way that English society will not accept him, and he has hidden himself away from scornful eyes for years. If the whole of society cannot accept him, why would a bride?  Courting the Vicar's Daughter: Harry Devon, son of a wealthy gentleman who cared more for money than his family, has returned to the family estate at last. Harry is prepared to leave it to others to make the difficult decisions. Until he meets the vicar's daughter. In the habit of serving others, Daisy determines to help Harry find his path and place in their community. When he embraces her plan with enthusiasm, their friendship begins to blossom into something more.

Duels & Deception


Cindy Anstey - 2017
    She will run the family estate until she marries the man of her late father's choosing, and then she will spend the rest of her days as a devoted wife. Confident in those arrangements, Lydia has tasked her young law clerk, Mr. Robert Newton, to begin drawing up the marriage contracts. Everything is going according to plan.Until Lydia—and Robert along with her—is kidnapped. Someone is after her fortune and won't hesitate to destroy her reputation to get it. With Robert's help, Lydia strives to keep her family's good name intact and expose whoever is behind the devious plot. But as their investigation delves deeper and their affections for each other grow, Lydia starts to wonder whether her carefully planned future is in fact what she truly wants…

A Winter's Vow


Kate Condie - 2021
    A haunted man. Can a fake marriage save them both, or will their secrets tear them apart?Della Hampton barely escaped her first marriage with her life. Desperate to outrun the wanted posters proclaiming her a murderess, she answers an advertisement for a mail-order bride in the isolated mining town of Kirwin, Wyoming. Her hasty decision turns desperate when she arrives to find her intended dead. Della is determined to do whatever it takes to remain in Kirwin and find a new name for herself—even if it means a fake marriage to the new foreman.Before Bastien Graham’s father will allow him to run the family mine in Montana, there is one final job he must tackle here in Wyoming: foreman. When his predecessor dies in a mining collapse, Bastien is promoted and ready to prove himself. Within days of stepping into the position, a mail-order bride is abandoned in town. Bastien, now assigned to take her down the mountain and into town, soon discovers the lady has other plans. But Bastien chose this lonely mountain for a reason and helping one woman doesn’t change the past. And for Della, a few months of kindness can’t replace a lifetime of hurt. Can they part ways when the winter is over? Or will their lies bind them tighter than they expected?A Winter’s Vow is first in the Aster Ridge Ranch series. It is a clean romance and can be read as a standalone or check out A Cowboy’s Vow to continue the series.

The Highlander's Lady (Highlands Forever Book 1)


Aileen Adams - 2019
     Olivia Smythe is the daughter an English earl and a Scottish woman. He has decided that his half-Scottish daughter should go to the Highlands for her own safety to avoid the border skirmishes that plague their area. He’s also pleaded her hand to a cruel Englishman. Laird Boyd MacPherson has no idea the Englishwoman he’s saved from cutthroats is the cousin of a Highland laird. He has no idea the courage and wherewithal that this young half-Scot can muster. He is quick to find out when she runs away and seeks to hide from her betrothed and the rest of the world. Boyd turns the Highlands upside down looking for her, only to find her in the least likely of places.

A Relative Matter


Karen Cogan - 2015
    They are sent to England to live with a grandfather that neither remembers. However, as the years pass, the kindly man proves a balm for their wounded hearts. His death, when it comes, is a cruel blow. Though his will leaves the estate to Jeremy, the boy is not yet of age. His grandfather’s nephew, a man with a mysterious past, is named guardian of the property and soon arrives to take up his duty. Unfortunately, the man has a son who is both evil and cunning. Since he stands to inherit the estate should Jeremy die, he will stop at nothing to get his hands on the property. Murder and threats of murder soon haunt their every move. Standing between them and disaster is the handsome Lord Westerfield, a man who promises to defend Anne and Jeremy, even at risk to his own life.

Where He Leads


Angela Castillo - 2019
     Compared to an arranged marriage to the odious Bernard Regent, a prairie schooner on the Oregon Trail doesn't seem like such a bad trade to Amethyst Kent. When desperate Martha Davis reveals her need for a mother's helper on the trail, Ami decides to up and leave the pampered life she's always known for a land of freedom. But trail life is hardly a tea party, and Ami must draw from the deepest wells of her faith to survive. With the sunset always before her, and Shiloh Talon, a handsome trail scout, guiding the way, she might just make it through.

A Wicked Scandal for the Bluestocking


Lucinda Nelson - 2019
    Now it’s time for him to save hers… Charlene Ellington is the daughter of a well-known and respected doctor in the area of Bath. Going to the woods to collect some herbs for her father’s work, she encounters the young Lord Eric Cumberland who was bitten by a venomous snake. Brave Charlene drags him immediately to her house and her father saves his life. The young Lord promised Charlene to repay the debt whenever Charlene needed his help. And he sealed that promise with a kiss. Her first one and not forgotten by both of them. Years after Charlene’s father is accused of poisoning a member of the peerage and he is sentenced to death. A devious Marquess blackmails her that if she betroths to him, he will clear her father’s name. Charlene decides to ask Eric’s help who is now an eligible and very wealthy Duke with a lot of power due to his father’s connections. But Charlene Ellington’s name is already dragged in the mud with the serious allegations against her father and Eric’s family doesn’t want him to associate with her. Besides the real murderer lurks in the shadows… Eric feels his passion for her grow as he is trying to help her case. But so is the passion of the devilish Marquess for her… Between schemes, life threatening and dangerous poisons will they find their place in the sun? *If you like thrilling characters, steamy and unexpected twists, and lots of romance, then you’ll love “A Wicked Scandal for the Bluestocking!” Get “A Wicked Scandal for the Bluestocking” and let the breathtaking story of Charlene and Eric unravel today!

Highlander's Fate


Alisa Adams - 2018
    An expert with weapons, she can also hold her own with any man in a battle of wits.She dreams of adventure in the great world. She wants it more than she can bear. And when suitor after suitor comes to offer their hand in marriage, Alexa is firm with each refusal.No man shall lay claim to her heart!Little does she know that from across the sea… her true destiny draws ever nearer.However, love is not without obstacles.Alexa will be faced with a choice: freedom or love?

The Governor's Daughter


Jerri Hines - 2016
    Cathryn finds Lieutenant Jake Pennington the most aggravating, maddening man she has ever met...a man Cathryn soon admits she is in no hurry to see leave. But fate has other plans for her in a world she is ill prepared to enter. She descends into a place where love and betrayal go hand and hand, where greed and treachery are second nature, but moreover the threat her father believes he has sent her is awaiting her arrival. When fate tears her apart from her Lieutenant, Cathryn finds herself desolate and alone. Soon, Cathryn makes fateful decisions that will send her back to her home. A home far different than the one she left. A war rages. Soon, she discovers her life is in danger and the only one that can save her is the one who left her heartbroken. Author's Note: This book was previously published with Whiskey Creek Press as The Judas Kiss and The Promise under the Tides of Charleston Series.

Passage West


Ruth Ryan Langan - 1988
    With her sister and hard-drinking father in tow, she needed all her strength for the long trek westward. But Abby could hold her own with any man, until she met a rugged gunman named Rourke...a man who roused the unspoken yearnings of her passionate soul.Rourke was a battle-scarred Union veteran, hired to guard the wagon train. A loner by choice and by fate, his heart was moved by Abby's plight--though the young beauty proudly refused his aid. Yet with the wagons rolling on through dusty plains and treacherous deserts, a tenderness bloomed between them as he taught her how to survive in a brutal land. Mile by mile, she grew to adore this magnificent man, and when he touched her she longed to be his alone. But as she tasted rapture's first, wild depths, she faced a bitter secret from the gunman's violent past. With Rourke in mortal danger, they would challenge destiny itself--to save the love and happiness they discovered on a perilous...Passage West...

The Governess' Debut


Wendy May Andrews - 2015
     Orphaned and destitute, gently born Felicia Scott must find a way to keep a roof over her head. No longer able to enter the Marriage Mart, but also not of the servant class, the only option is to find a position as governess. After his spoiled, seven year old daughter has sent off three governesses in the 18 months since her mother died, the Earl of Standish doubts the young, inexperienced Miss Scott could possible manage the position. Since he’s desperate and she comes so highly recommended, the earl agrees to give her a chance. Much to everyone’s amazement, the beautiful, young governess succeeds where the others had failed. The entire household benefits from the calm, including the jaded earl. How does he overcome his arrogance to see his governess’ true value? Previously published by Astraea Press.